Goodness

Copyright

January 16, 2009

Digital Decorating

Digital
transfer offers endless possibilities for creating custom décor
elements. I recently came across a company that expanded my ideas
regarding the medium. The company, Orangepiel of Sausalito, California
offers creative technology that has intriguing possibilities on a grand
scale. With one decoxr panel they can completely infuse a room with the
mood and style that is desired. They have the ability to custom print
virtually any text, graphic, photograph, or pattern on an almost
limitless size panel.

Orangepiel is on the forefront of this technology and as they say they
are “redefining atmosphere through innovation.” They have created and
patented a textile system that looks and feels like an artist’s canvas
stretched. The fabric and process is environmentally friendly and can
be applied without any adhesives. The panels are installed on a
perimeter tracking system, which can create seamless walls and ceilings
up to 16 feet by 165 feet run lengths. They have the flexibility to
create unique design shapes, drop ceilings and backlit panels. Imagine
the possibilities!

I went to beautiful Sausalito to visit the Orangepiel Design Studio,
which is located in the old shipyards from World War II. The owner of
Orangepiel, Daniel McCool, showed me around the studio and discussed
his work and his artful approach to the medium and life. His studio
showcases some of the design applications of transfer, from watercolors
and photos, to photos of photos. The studio ceiling is a huge black and
white photo of a full moon which can be lit from behind at night.

The Material

The material was developed to accommodate the Asian and European
markets where they have older construction made with plaster, concrete
and block. The material was created as an efficient way to reskin the
ceiling or walls. What makes the material unique is its technical
properties, it can be stretched wide widths up to 16 feet by 16 feet
without deflection, it will not sag in the middle like fabric would.
The material creates a perfectly flat plane, which is really important
for construction or architectural applications. Where you need to know
standard deviations and how the material is going to react.

Artistic Applications

The technical side is the less glamorous side of what Orangepiel does.
They have been importing to the United States and have gone through the
process of learning how to print on it. McCool has been working with
the printing aspect and one thing he likes about it is that it is not
limited to any particular medium. It’s a digital transfer taking
something that has been digitized and reproducing it but it lends
itself to photography, to the graphic arts and even a poet’s text on
watercolor. They can take all sorts of mediums. McCool expressed his
views in what they are doing by saying that to him it is like that
transition that was made around the turn of the 20th Century. How long
did it take before photography was considered art?
Through this medium he is providing a pallet to people who approach it
in new ways that he has not even thought of and to be involved in the
creative process.
McCool says “The way I want to approach and take this medium is to
create atmosphere and the way to do it efficiently and without using
vast resources. We can get a lot of bang for the buck with what we are
doing. The footprint of how much we can create verses how much material
we are really using, it’s not that much so it gives the artist that
flexibility to create a space or to really set themselves apart.”

The applications are almost unlimited not just for the home but can be
used in the hospitality industry, commercial space, retail or by an
artist that wants to create an experiential installation it works
across all applications.

The way most other digital transfer companies work is you send them an
image and they will reproduce it. It is a business-oriented
transaction. Orangepiel offers design services to customize and create
a unique piece.

“The reason I do this is because I like to make beautiful things and I
feel like as a business model that sets me apart from other digital
transferring and large printing houses,” McCool said.

McCool likes the process of connecting and collaborating with the
artist and creating unique and beautiful settings. He feels the beauty
of his job is others coming across incredible artists and experiencing
the diversity of their art. This is a lot of fun for him.

McCool is philosophic about his work in the world and questions if he
is doing enough to make it a better place by intending and bringing
beauty in the world.
“We have a unique product but my big word is collaboration, we are
about making sure we can connect the right artist to the right client
and really go that extra step to give the client what they really
want.”

What I left with after visiting with McCool was that his business is
about beauty, people and connection which to me is the new healthy
model of growing and being in business as well as being in the world.